EASTERN CRETE

fashion at the time. His epic chivalric poem
"Erotokritos" (he who is tormented by Eros)
is composed of 1680 verses and tells, in
flowery language, of the heroic battle
between princes and warriors for the hand
of the Princess Aretusa, who after terrible
misadventures comes to marry the
protagonist Erotokritos. The romance unites
myth, legend, magic, passion, adventure,
proverbs and folk wisdom and today the old
folk still know the verses by heart, and sing
them as they did in the past.
With the Ottoman occupation the city
fell into ruin until 1870, when an illuminated
Turk, Avni Pasha, drew up the new city plan
and had it rebuilt, in spite of the outbreaks
of rebellion that hinted at the imminent
demise of the Sultans' dominion. Following
the liberation and independence of the
island, Sitia was gradually repopulated and
became the lively and beautiful town,
oriental in character, with narrow streets,
cafes, taverns and open-air markets, that it
is today. One should not miss out on a visit
to the Folklore Museum and above all the
Archaeological Museum which houses
important finds from the Minoan civilisation
- including many votive
offerings from the
nearby peak
sanctuaries and a
splendid Minoan
"prince" in gold and
ivory found at
Palaekastro, along with
numerous daedalic
figurines in the
Egyptian style and
objects from the Greek
and Roman periods.
This engraving
from 1651 shows
the town of Sitia at
the time of the
famous poet
Vincenzo Cornaro,
author of the epic
"Erotokritos"
Daedalic figurines
were very common
in Doric time
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